Monthly Archives April 2018

By Ali Bahrami-Bayeh, NOAA Office of Response and Restoration Health and Safety Officer

Today is World Day for Safety and Health at Work, also known as “Workers’ Memorial Day.” This day is a time to remember and honor those who have suffered injuries or lost their lives on the job. Also, it’s a time for us to reflect on lessons learned and strengthen our commitment to safety at work.

This is the seventh in a monthly series profiling scientists and technicians who provide exemplary contributions to the mission of NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R). This month’s profile is on Marine Debris Program Chief Scientist Amy Uhrin.

Earth Day dates back to 1970, when Senator Gaylord Nelson implemented it as a day to recognize the need for environmental protection. That same year in December, Congress created the Environmental Protection Agency. NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration gained its first recognition in environmental issues six years later when the Argo Merchant tanker vessel grounded near Nantucket Shoals in Massachusetts, spilling nearly 8 million gallons of oil ...

Eight years ago today, on April 20, 2010, an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon Macondo oil well drilling platform tragically killed 11 workers, and started the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history, releasing millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

By Amanda Laverty, Office of Response and Restoration Marine Debris Program

Marine debris and plastic pollution first appeared in scientific literature in the 1970s, and have since become highly published topics. Debris can be found in a variety of marine environments — from coasts and remote beaches, to Arctic and Antarctic regions — throughout the open ocean and all the way down to the deepest depths of the sea floor.

Every month our Emergency Response Division provides scientific expertise and services to the U.S. Coast Guard on everything from running oil spill trajectories to model where the spill may spread, to possible effects on wildlife and fisheries, and estimates on how long the oil may stay in the environment.

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